Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1887-03-23
SMOKE AND FLAME.
Terrible Scene in a Buffalo Rotel-Nany
Lives Lost.


other calamity has visited Buffalo.
The splendid New Richmond Hotel, st
the corner Of Main and Eagle Stress
and extending through to Washing
ton Street, was totally destroyed by
fire which was discovered at $50 this
morning, together With st. James
Hall and other adjacent property.
The most distressing part OF the dis
aster is the loss or several human
lives. At this writing 10 A. N. it is
impossible to say just how many per-
sons are killed and injured, but the
number is large. The rapidity OF the
FIRE, cutting off means OF escape, led
some persons to leap for life from the
windows. Others got down the fire
escapes or on Hayes ladders raised
by the fire department..
The spread of the flames is said to
have been frightful in it's rapidity.
The elevator shaf5 served as fue for
the flames, and they rushed upto the
top floor in g. very few moments. AS
the guests were reused and saw the
interior exits cut off, they turned to
the windows. They could be seen in
their nightclothes standing out clear
and vivid before the lurid back
ground of the flames. Their screams
were horrible to hear, and they could
be heard for blocks. The flames
spread to the southeast side of the
hotel first. The fremen did noble
work, and confined the fire to the mar
row limits of the three buildings
named. Their work OF rescue had
many exciting Incidents. The tele-
graph wires were ss usu in the way
of the ladder brigade, and much valu-
able time was lost in getting the lad
ders past them.
THE SHRIEKS AND CRIES
of the people in the upper stories of
the burning structure were heartrend-
ing. One man, mad with terror, leap
ed from a third story window and was
picked up from the stone sidewalk
on Main Street. mangled and bleed
ing corpse. Several who succeeded in
making their escape were badly injur-
ed and burned, and some OF these will
probably die. Others. more fortu-
nate, escaped with slight injuries.
Many of the wounded were taken to
Carney's saloon and afterwards to
hospitals. Among these was f. II.
Bryant, New York travelling man,
burned about the feet and hands; M.
W. Barse, of Clean, terribly burned
about the hands and wrists; Robert
Stafford, senior proprietor OF the ho-
tel with his wife occupied rooms on
the second floor and had q narrow es-
cape. Terror overcame everybody
and even those who escaped in safety,
were in many cases FRUSTRATED by
their awful experiences. At 8 O'Clock
the estimate of the loss of life was
stated to be IL, but this is, in g. meas
ure, mere guess work. There were 1875
persons In the hotel, 20 ofwhom were
transient guests, eight boarders and
the remainder porters, bell-boys, the
families of the proprietors and clerks.
Twenty-Five OF these were rescued
from windows by the fireman, TWEEN
ty two are at the hospitals, and a
large number made their escape by
other means.
SPREAD OF THE FLAMES.
William III. ABORT. night clerk,
states that he was sitting in the Office
at $40 O'Clock when he cav q rehec-
ton on the floor. Turning round he
discovered blaze in the coat and
cloak room directly under the stair
way on the main floor. The flames
at once darted up the elevator shaft
with tremendous force, and in an in
credibly short space of time the In
terror of the hotel was filled with
smoke and flame. Then terrible
scenes began. The second and third
alarms brought the entire fire depart
ment to the scene, but it. was impos-
sible to save any portion of the
structure. The fire had reached the
roof in less than five minutes from the
time it was discovered. Il soon
reached and quilted St. James Hall,
occupied as Bunnell's Museum, and
Tivoli Hall adjoining, and fronting on
Washington Street.
The fire, which was under control
by s O'Clock, was confined to the
Richmond Hotel and museum prop.
erty, together with the saloon of
James Creighton and the cigar store
of J. G. Palacio, on the Main Street
side. The Main Street stores of the
Richmond Hotel were occupied by Ul-
brich & Kingsley, booksellers and sta
tioners; Peter Paul & Brothers, in the
same line of business, and Fuller &
Townsend, proprietors of the Boston
clothing store. The stocks in these
stores were totally destroyed, entail
ing heavy losses.
AS usual, the firemen were harnpered
terribly by the mass of telegraph
wires and cables strung in front OF the
building on Main Street. Some eye
witnesses think the loss OF life was
largely due to the delay caused by the
wires.